Heavy fighting persists in eastern Ukraine as Russian drone strikes cause civilian deaths

Heavy fighting has persisted along multiple sectors of the frontline in Ukraine, with the Ukrainian General Staff reporting over 250 combat engagements within 24 hours. Russian forces launched intense assault operations across the Pokrovsk, Lyman, and Kostiantynivka axes in an attempt to breach Ukrainian defenses.

Simultaneously, Ukrainian infantry executed clearing operations north of Kupiansk on the right bank of the Oskil River following efforts to suppress Russian drone activity. Conflicting claims emerged on peripheral fronts: Russia’s Defense Ministry reported taking several settlements near Sumy, while Russian Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov disputed reported Ukrainian advances in Zaporizhzhia.

A wave of overnight Russian drone attacks continued to strike civilian areas. Ukrainian officials reported multiple fatalities, including a mother and two children in the Kyiv region and a priest in Kherson Oblast.

Sources: NV, Point, Radio Svoboda, The Insider, Ukrainska Pravda.